Southern Dragon Kung Fu
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The movements of the Southern Dragon style (traditional name Lung Ying "Dragon Form"; ) of Shaolin Boxing are based on the mythical
Chinese dragon The Chinese dragon or loong is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture generally. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms, such as Bixi (mythology), turtles and Chiwen, fish, but are most commonly ...
. The Dragon style is an imitative-style that was developed based on the imagined characteristics of the mythical
Chinese dragon The Chinese dragon or loong is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture generally. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms, such as Bixi (mythology), turtles and Chiwen, fish, but are most commonly ...
.


History

The history of the Southern Dragon style has historically been transmitted orally rather than by text, so its origins will likely never be known in their entirety. Modern Southern Dragon style's history can be reliably traced to the monk Daai Yuk Sim Si, who was the abbot of Huashoutai (White Hair) temple on
Mount Luofu Mount Luofu ( zh, s=罗浮山, t=羅浮山 , p=Luófú Shān , cy=lo4 fau4 saan1) is a sacred Taoist mountain situated on the north bank of the Dongjiang in the northwest of Boluo County, Huizhou in Guangdong Province, China. It covers 250 kilo ...
. No reliable records of the style's origin prior to Daai exist, though there is much speculation regarding the subject. Southern Dragon style has its roots in a combination of the local styles of the
Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka-speaking Chinese, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas, are a southern Han Chinese subgroup whose principal settlements and ancestral homes are dispersed widely across the provinces of southern China ...
heartland in inland eastern
Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...
, and the style that the monk Ji Sin Sim Si taught in Guangdong and the neighboring province of
Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...
in the 18th century. North of the
Dongjiang The Dong River is the easternmost main tributary of the Pearl River, flowing through Guangdong and Jiangxi in southern China. It's source is Mount Yajibo in Xunwu County in Jiangxi. Since 1960, water from the Dong has also been exported ...
, in the northwest of
Boluo County Boluo County () is a county of east-central Guangdong province, People's Republic of China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Huizhou, and in 2020, had a population of 1,210,878 residing in an area of . It borders Y ...
in the
prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...
of
Huizhou Huizhou ( zh, c= ) is a city in east-central Guangdong Province, China, forty-three miles north of Hong Kong. Huizhou borders the provincial capital of Guangzhou to the west, Shenzhen and Dongguan to the southwest, Shaoguan to the north, Hey ...
in Guangdong Province, is the sacred mountain Luofushan. Luofushan is the site of many temples, including Huashoutai where, c. 1900, a Chan (Zen) master named Daai Yuk taught Southern Dragon style to Lam Yiu Gwai (1874–1965), who in turn passed the art on to the many students of his schools in
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
. Lam Yiu Gwai and
Jeung Lai Chuen Cheung Lai-chuen was a Chinese martial artist. He was born in 1882 during the Qing dynasty. He was a student of many great Kung Fu masters and mastered the Li family kung fu, Lei Ga (李家, Lee Style), Southern Dragon Kung Fu, Lau Man Gaau (流 ...
(1880-1966) were good friends from their youth in the Dongjiang region of Huizhou, longtime training partners and later cousins by marriage. Lam and Jeung would open several schools together, and Southern Dragon style and Jeung's style of
Bak Mei Bak Mei () is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders—survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Monastery by the Qing dynasty (1644–1912)—who, according to some accounts, betrayed Shaolin to the imperial government. He ...
would go on to share many similarities. A variation of the Southern Dragon style is taught by the Long Choo Kung Fu Society based in Penang, Malaysia, and with branches in Australia. Founded by Li Ah Yu and his father near the turn of the 20th century, this association claims it is teaching a Soft/Hard Dragon style originating from Fujian province.


Methods and philosophy

Southern Dragons kung fu is essentially an internal '' qi'' cultivation method, but initialization training produces closer results to that of a hard, external style than the delicate approach an internal (like
tai chi is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners ...
or ''
baguazhang ''Baguazhang'' () is one of the three main Chinese martial arts of the '' Wudang'' school, the other two being tai chi and '' xingyiquan''. It is more broadly grouped as an internal practice (or ''neijia''). ''Baguazhang'' literally means "eigh ...
'') would. In learning the moves of the style, the student will strike hard, block hard and rush into each position, with the idea of learning the proper place to be once each movement is complete. Eventually, the method of transmitting power is retained, and the physically strengthened body is able to make transitions in the proper, fluid manner. In turn, this dragon-like smoothness helps disguise the attack, making it extremely difficult for an adversary to effectively counter. Once a purely physical semblance to flow has been mastered, the disciple incorporates the deep hissing sounds associated with the style to train chi flow. Inhaling is silent, but exhalation is deliberate, tense, and controlled. Inhaling lightens the body for aerial maneuvers, while exhaling drives power into each technique. Blocking is dispensed with, and parries or simple strikes substituted. At this point, novice and advanced student show very little in common. On the highest level, an opponent is allowed to tire himself out, with evasion becoming the Dragon's key defense. ''Qi'' control is highly developed, and the degree to which the body must be moved to redirect or avoid impact is under greater control. The forms (''Taolu''; 套路) that constitute this system are divided by complexity into three categories, and are enumerated below: *Basic **16 Movements/Holes () **Passing Bridge Three Times () **Fierce Tiger Leaping Over Wall () **Rescue Master From Single Side () **Single Sword and Mount () **Press and Hit from Four Sides () **Eagle Claw () **Bridge Smashing () *Intermediate **Touch Bridge (introduces sticking hands) () **Venomous Snake Moves Tongue () **Hua King's Fist () **Standing Five-Form () **Cross Standing Five-Form **Turn to Hook and Hit **Five Horses Returning to Stable () *Advanced **Plum Flower Punch () **Seven Ways of Plum Flower Punch () In each form, one is taught to "ride the wind", a phrase which in large part means follow rather than lead. Provide no opening without first letting your opponent open. Unlike the Crane style, which also relies heavily upon evasion as a tactic, the Dragon style evades primarily by rotation of upper or lower torso with straight and zig-zag stance movements, while the Crane stylist hops frequently to reposition the entire body. Both styles employ pinpoint strikes to vulnerable meridian targets, but the Dragon style also heavily uses tiger-like punches and clawing techniques, snake-like stance shifts, and leopard-like hit and run strikes to weaken a physically superior adversary. Southern Dragon kung fu also regularly employs low sweeping techniques, but these are not unique. Most senior stylists of any kung fu system use these on a weakened adversary.


Dragon style in popular culture

*The 2010 show ''A Fistful of Stances'' has used the Dragon style in episodes 22 and 23. *The style was performed by
Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...
in ''
Dragon Fist ''Dragon Fist'' (, also known as ''Dangsang Martial Arts'' or ''The Wild Big Boss'') is a 1979 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Lo Wei, who also Hsu Li-hwa. The film stars Jackie Chan, Nora Miao, James Tien, Yen Shi-kwan, Eagle Ha ...
''. *The Dragon style is one of the three fighting styles utilized by the character Sub-Zero in the ''
Mortal Kombat ''Mortal Kombat'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of fighting game, fighting video games originally developed by Midway Games in 1992. The original ''Mortal Kombat (1992 video game), Mortal Kombat'' arcade game spawned Lis ...
'' series (as seen in '' Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance'' and '' Mortal Kombat: Deception'') and the character Jarek in '' Mortal Kombat: Armageddon''. It is also
Liu Kang Liu Kang () is a fictional character of the ''Mortal Kombat'' fighting game franchise by Midway Games and NetherRealm Studios. Depicted as Earthrealm's greatest warrior and champion, he debuted in the Mortal Kombat (1992 video game), original 1 ...
's grapple style in '' Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks''. Onaga, the boss character of '' Mortal Kombat: Deception'', also uses a fighting style named Dragon. *The Dragon fighting style is used at times by the police officer
Lei Wulong Bandai Namco Entertainment's '' Tekken'' media franchise is known for its diverse cast of characters hailing from various nationalities, all coming together to compete in the King of Iron Fist tournament. In addition to the human characters, ' ...
in ''
Tekken is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting games developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment (formerly Namco). The franchise also includes film and print adaptations. The main games in the series follow the events ...
''. * ''Southern Dragon kung fu'' inspired some firebending techniques on the 2005–2008
Nickelodeon Animation Studio Nickelodeon Animation Studio Inc. (also known as Nickelodeon Animation Studios or Nick Animation and credited as Nickelodeon Productions on-screen) is an American animation studio owned by Paramount Global through the Nickelodeon Group. It has c ...
TV series ''
Avatar: The Last Airbender ''Avatar: The Last Airbender'', also known as ''Avatar: The Legend of Aang'' in some regions, is an American animated series, animated fantasy television, fantasy Action fiction, action television series created by Michael Dante DiMartino a ...
'',
M. Night Shyamalan Manoj Nelliyattu M. Night Shyamalan ( ; born August 6, 1970) is an American filmmaker. His films often employ supernatural plots and twist endings. The cumulative gross of his films exceeds $3.3 billion globally. Shyamalan has received vario ...
's 2010 film counterpart, its 2024 Netflix counterpart, and its sequel series ''
The Legend of Korra ''The Legend of Korra'' (abbreviated as ''TLOK'' and also known as ''Avatar: The Legend of Korra'' or more rarely simply as ''Korra'') is an American animated Fantasy television, fantasy action drama television series created by Michael Dante ...
''. * ''Southern Dragon'' was among the fighting styles used by
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
and
Catwoman Catwoman is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, she debuted as "the Cat" in ''Batman (comic book), Batman'' #1 (spring 1940). She has become one of the superhero Batman' ...
on the
DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
franchises. *
Kazuma Kiryu is a fictional character and the initial main protagonist of Sega's action-adventure beat 'em up Japanese role-playing game franchise '' Yakuza / Like a Dragon''. He is popularly known as due to the tattoo of a dragon on his back and him origina ...
the protagonist of the
Yakuza (franchise) , formerly known outside of Japan as ''Yakuza'', is a video game franchise by Sega. It incorporates elements of the action-adventure, beat 'em up, and role-playing genres. Each installment is typically a crime drama, with plot lines inspired ...
series uses a fighting style called 'Dragon Style' although this is not the same martial art


References


External links

*Dongjiang Dragon Style (Dongjiang Lungxing). *
History of Southern Dragon Style Kung Fu
by Steve Martin (2003) Retrieved October 7, 2004. *

Retrieved October 7, 2004.

Retrieved October 7, 2004.
Information about Southern Dragon Style Kung Fu

An introductory article on Dragon Kung Fu



Wah Nam Lung Ying History AustraliaYip's Dragon Style Kung Fu New York
{{Kung fu schools Guangdong Nanquan Martial arts of Hakka origins Buddhist martial arts Chinese dragons